U.S. patent number 6,516,998 [Application Number 09/912,060] was granted by the patent office on 2003-02-11 for self-service terminal.
This patent grant is currently assigned to NCR Corporation. Invention is credited to Andrew Calder, Simon J. Forrest, Timothy P. Johnson, Ian McIntyre, John A. Peebles, Gary A. Ross, David Sommerville, Christopher W. Wylie.
United States Patent |
6,516,998 |
Calder , et al. |
February 11, 2003 |
Self-service terminal
Abstract
A self-service terminal (SST) (10) is provided which includes a
plurality of media dispense and deposit modules (16), a media port
(14), and a media transport (22) movable between the modules (16)
and the port (14), the transport (22) including a media entrance
and a media exit. The transport (22) may be movable vertically,
horizontally, or both. Embodiments of the invention include SSTs
with a number of separate media module assemblies and a number of
movable transports, and SSTs with two communicating transports
which may pass media between them.
Inventors: |
Calder; Andrew (Dundee,
GB), Ross; Gary A. (Fife, GB), Peebles;
John A. (Dundee, GB), Forrest; Simon J. (Dundee,
GB), McIntyre; Ian (Dundee, GB), Wylie;
Christopher W. (Dundee, GB), Sommerville; David
(Edinburgh, GB), Johnson; Timothy P. (Enumclaw,
WA) |
Assignee: |
NCR Corporation (Dayton,
OH)
|
Family
ID: |
9896711 |
Appl.
No.: |
09/912,060 |
Filed: |
July 24, 2001 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
Current U.S.
Class: |
235/381; 235/379;
235/384; 235/385; 235/383 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G07F
11/38 (20130101); G07D 11/40 (20190101); G07D
11/14 (20190101); G07F 19/205 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G07D
11/00 (20060101); G07F 11/02 (20060101); G07F
11/38 (20060101); G06F 007/08 () |
Field of
Search: |
;235/381,375,379,383,384,385 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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|
|
|
|
|
|
1535706 |
|
Dec 1978 |
|
GB |
|
06231341 |
|
Aug 1994 |
|
JP |
|
Primary Examiner: Frech; Karl D.
Assistant Examiner: Walsh; Daniel
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Priest; Peter H.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A media transport for dispensing and depositing media between a
media access port and a module comprising: a housing having a base,
a vertical wall, a media entrance slot defined by a separation in
the vertical wall; a plurality of drive wheels aligned with the
media entrance slot to draw media into the transport then on to the
base; a sensor to detect media type upon entrance of media through
the media entrance slot; and an exiting means for guiding the media
from the base to either the module or the media access port.
2. A self-service terminal comprising: a plurality of media
modules, the plurality of media modules includes a media dispense
module and a media deposit module; a media port; a first movable
media transport movable between the media modules and the media
port, the first movable media transport including a housing having
a media entrance and a media exit for ingress and egress of media,
respectively, the first movable media transport further including a
sensor to detect media type, the first movable media transport
deposits media from the media port to any of the plurality of media
modules and dispenses media from any of the plurality of media
modules to the media port; and a second movable media transport,
the first movable media transport is associated with serving the
media dispense module and dispenses media from the media dispense
module to the media port, the second movable media transport is
associated with serving the media deposit module and deposits media
received from the media port to the media deposit module.
3. A self-service terminal comprising: a plurality of media
modules, the plurality of media modules includes at least one media
dispense module and at least one media deposit module; a media
port; a first movable media transport movable between the at least
one media dispense module and the media port; a second movable
media transport movable between the at least one media deposit
module and the media port, both movable media transports including
a housing having a media entrance and a media exit for ingress and
egress of media, respectively; and a security safe within which a
third media transport is disposed, and outside which the second
media transport is disposed, the security safe including means
defining an opening through which media can pass from the second
media transport to the third media transport.
4. A self-service terminal comprising: a plurality of media
modules; a media port; a first movable media transport movable
between the media modules and the media port, the first movable
media transport including a housing having a media entrance and a
media exit for ingress and egress of media, respectively, the first
movable media transport further including a sensor to detect media
type, the first movable media transport deposits media from the
media port to any of the plurality of media modules and dispenses
media from any of the plurality of media modules to the media port;
a spring platform; a drive wheel for drawing media into the media
transport and onto the spring platform; and an exiting means for
guiding the media from the spring platform out of the media
transport.
5. The self-service terminal of claim 4, wherein the exiting means
further comprises a flick wheel operable to pick the media from the
spring platform.
6. A self-service terminal comprising: a plurality of media
modules; a media port; a movable media transport movable between
the media modules and the media port, the media transport including
a housing having a media entrance and a media exit for ingress and
egress of media, respectively; the plurality of media modules
includes at least one media dispense module and at least one media
deposit module; another media transport such that one media
transport is associated with serving the at least one media
dispense module and the other media transport is associated with
serving the at least one media deposit module; and a security safe
within which one media transport is disposed, and outside which the
other media transport is disposed, the security safe including
means defining an opening through which media can pass from one
media transport to the other media transport.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a self-service terminal (SST),
such as an automated teller machine (ATM), and to a media transport
mechanism for use therein.
Self-service terminals (SSTs) may be used for dispensing a wide
range of media: banknotes of several denominations, printed
receipts, tickets, and so forth. They may also or instead have
facilities for entering media into the SST: banknotes or cheques,
tickets, vouchers and the like. SSTs may also have facilities for
receiving ATM cards, credit cards, smart cards and the like; for
convenience, all these items will hereinafter be referred to as
"media". Conventional SSTs are constructed with a module dedicated
to each media function: for example, one set of modules may
dispense banknotes of different denominations, one module may
accept a user's magnetic strip cards, a further module prints and
dispenses receipts and paper slips while a fourth module may accept
deposited banknotes and cheques. Each of these modules, or groups
of modules, is also provided with a media port on the fascia of the
SST to allow entry or exit of the appropriate media to the module.
However, space on an SST fascia is limited, and a plethora of ports
will not only look unsightly, but may also be confusing to a user.
Further, the addition of another module to an SST may necessitate
an extensive redesign of both the SST fascia and the internal
module arrangement.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore among the objects of embodiments of the present
invention to obviate or alleviate these and other disadvantages of
existing SSTs, and also to enable new modules to be added to an SST
relatively simply, without requiring extensive redesign of the SST,
and in particular the SST fascia. This is achieved in certain
embodiments of the invention in part by the provision of a
transport mechanism which is itself movable between modules and
ports.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a self-service terminal (SST) comprising a plurality of
media modules, a media port, and a movable media transport, the
transport comprising a housing having a media entrance and a media
exit for ingress and egress of media, respectively, and the
transport being movable between the media modules and the media
port.
This aspect of the invention therefore enables a number of modules
to make use of a single common media port, and to provide fewer
ports than modules. The invention also enables a media module to be
located a distance away from its associated port. "Media" as used
herein is intended to include, for example, banknotes, paper items,
cheques, tickets, and plastic cards.
Preferably the transport is vertically movable. The transport may
instead or in addition be horizontally movable. In preferred
embodiments of the invention, the transport is both horizontally
and vertically movable, and front faces of the media modules are
arranged to lie in the same depth plane, so that no depthwise
movement of the transport is necessary.
Preferably the transport further comprises media movement means for
moving media into and out of the transport. The media movement
means may comprise, for example, rollers, belts, a tray, or the
like. There may be provided separate media movement means for
moving media respectively in and out of the transport. The movement
means may be capable of moving media items either singly, or
bunched, or both.
The housing may be completely enclosed, except the entrance and
exit; or may merely be a partial enclosure, serving to define a
space for retaining media.
Preferably the media entrance and the media exit are on opposed
sides of the transport. This enables media to flow through the
transport along a single movement path, and conforms to the
conventional arrangement of SSTs, with the media modules arranged
behind the media port from a user's point of view. Alternatively,
the media entrance and media exit may be on the same face of the
transport, in which case the media entrance may also serve as the
media exit.
In certain embodiments of the invention, the media modules may be
media dispense modules, and the transport media entrance receives
media from the modules, while the media exit delivers media to the
media port. Other embodiments of the invention may provide the
media modules as media deposit modules, with the transport media
entrance receiving media from the media port, and the media exit
delivering media to the modules.
Preferred embodiments of the invention include both media dispense
and media deposit modules. Such embodiments may comprise two media
transports, one serving the dispense module or modules, and one
serving the deposit module or modules. There may also be provided
two media ports, one for each transport. In certain embodiments of
the invention, the SST may comprise two or more modular assemblies,
each of which comprises media modules of one type (dispense or
deposit), a media port, and a media transport. These assemblies may
be easily and swiftly assembled in any desired combination to
provide additional functionalities to an SST.
Alternatively, a single transport may serve both media dispense and
media deposit modules. The roles of the transport media entrance
and the media exit may switch, depending on whether the transport
is currently serving a deposit or a dispense module. Alternatively,
the transport may comprise two media entrances and two media exits,
having one of each type on either side of the transport.
Some SSTs, particularly those dealing with valuable media such as
banknotes, include a reinforced security safe in which media to be
dispensed is stored. The present invention may include such SSTs,
which further comprise a media transport disposed within the safe,
and a media transport disposed outwith the safe, the transports
being in communication via an opening in the safe such that media
may pass from one transport to the other. The transport outwith the
safe is preferably also movable to access media modules outwith the
safe.
Preferably the transport comprises sensors. These may be sensors
for detecting properties of media within the transport. For
example, note thickness sensors may be used to determine whether
notes are present as a single note or as multiple notes. Other
media sensors which may be used include sensors for detecting
dimensions of media; or magnetic or optical sensors for determining
magnetic or optical properties of media. The transport may also
include sensors for determining the alignment of the transport with
respect to media modules or the media port to ensure that the
transport media entrance or exit is aligned correctly with the
media modules or media port; for example, optical, magnetic or
electronic sensors may be used. Alternatively, or in addition,
similar sensors may be provided on the media modules or media
port.
The transport may further comprise printing means, for generating
printed marks on media; for example, receipts or acknowledgement
slips dispensed by the SST may be printed within the transport.
Preferably the transport comprises media collator means, for
collating bundles of media within the transport. Typically media to
be dispensed is removed from the media modules singly, but is
presented to the user as a bundle of media. For example, the media
collator means may comprise a bin in which single media are placed,
to assemble a bundle.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a method of dispensing media from a self-service terminal
(SST) including a plurality of media modules, the method comprising
the steps of: moving a media transport to a first media module;
dispensing media from the first module into a housing of the media
transport; moving the transport to a media dispense slot; and
presenting the media from the transport through the dispense
slot.
Preferably the method further includes the steps of: moving the
transport to a subsequent module; dispensing media from the module
into a housing of the transport; repeating the previous two steps
as necessary until the transport has gathered all media to be
dispensed.
These steps may be executed either before or after moving the media
transport to a media dispense slot.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a method of depositing media in a self-service terminal
(SST) including a media module, the method comprising the steps of:
locating a media transport comprising a housing adjacent a media
port; accepting media into the housing of the transport from the
port; moving the media transport to a media module; and
transferring media from the transport to the module.
According to a still further aspect of the invention, there is
provided a self-service terminal (SST) comprising a plurality of
modular assemblies, each assembly comprising at least one media
module, a media port, and a media transport for transporting media
between the port and the module.
Conveniently a plurality of media modules are provided in some or
all of the modular assemblies, and the transport may transport
media between the modules and the media port of an assembly.
The media transport of an assembly may be movable between the
modules and the port, in a similar manner to those aspects of the
invention described above. In preferred embodiments of the
invention, however, the media transport comprises an elongate media
path along which media may move. Preferably the media is driven
along the media path by a media conveyor, which may comprise a gear
train, or a series of belts or the like.
Where a plurality of modules are provided in an assembly,
preferably the transport of an assembly may selectively pass media
between the media port and a selected one of the modules.
Preferably at least one modular assembly is for accepting media,
and at least one other modular assembly is for dispensing media. In
this way, each media transport need only transport media in one
direction. Preferably the media accepting modular assembly further
comprises means for identifying entered media, and means for
selectively transporting identified media to a selected module. The
means for identifying media may for example comprise an optical
scanner. Thus, for example, entered banknotes may be identified as
a particular denomination, and transported to a module designated
for receiving that particular denomination of banknote.
According to a yet further aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a self-service terminal (SST) comprising a modular
assembly for accepting media, the assembly comprising a plurality
of media modules, a media port and an elongate media path along
which media may move, for selectively transporting media from the
media port to a selected media module.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other aspects of the present invention will now be
described by way of example only and with reference to the
accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 shows a sketch of a self-service terminal (SST) in
accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 shows an SST in accordance with a second embodiment of the
present invention;
FIG. 3 shows a portion of an SST in accordance with a third
embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 4 shows a sketch of a media transport as may be used with the
SSTs of FIGS. 1 to 3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring first of all to FIG. 1, this shows a self-service
terminal (SST) in accordance with a first embodiment of the present
invention. The SST 10 includes a fascia 12 which is accessible by a
user, in which is set a media port 14 through which banknotes are
dispensed to the user. Inside the SST 10 are located four media
dispense modules 16, each of which contains a different
denomination of banknotes, and a media purge bin 18, for receiving
banknotes which cannot be dispensed (for example, if multiple notes
are picked from a module in error). Mounted on a pair of vertical
tracks 20 and driven by motors (not shown) between the modules 16
and the SST fascia 12 is a movable media transport 22.
When a user wishes to obtain money from the SST 10, the SST 10
first determines which combination of notes to dispense, to make up
the desired amount. The media transport 22 is then moved to lie
adjacent the lowest of the modules 16, and the appropriate number
of banknotes of the particular denomination held by the module 16
are removed from the module 16 and passed into the transport 22.
The transport 22 is then moved upward to the next module 16, and
the process repeated. Once all necessary modules 16 have been
visited, the transport is moved into alignment with the media port
14 and the purge bin 18. If all is well with the transaction, the
gathered media is presented through the media port 14 to the user.
If the transaction is cancelled, or if the user fails to take their
presented banknotes, the media is moved in the reverse direction
into the purge bin 18, where it is stored until a human operator
can confirm the contents of the bin.
A modification of this first embodiment is shown in FIG. 2. This
Figure illustrates an SST 30 including two separate modular
assemblies or stacks 32, 34 of modules 36. Each stack 32, 34
includes a vertically movable transport (not shown) as described
above. The first stack 32 is essentially identical to the SST 10
described in relation to FIG. 1, comprising a number of dispense
modules 36 and a media dispense port 38. The other stack 34 however
consists of a media deposit port 40 and a number of media deposit
modules 41. If a user wishes to deposit banknotes into the SST 30,
they may place the notes, either singly or in a bundle, into the
deposit slot 40. The media are fed into a vertically-movable
transport, which includes currency identification and validation
sensors to detect non-genuine banknotes. The transport is then
moved to each deposit module 41 in turn, where the media may be
transferred from the transport to the appropriate module.
A further alternative embodiment of the invention is shown in FIG.
3. This shows a portion of an SST 50 with the fascia removed. The
SST 50 includes a number of media modules 52 arranged within the
SST, and a media transport 54 movably mounted on both horizontal 56
and vertical rails 58. The operation of the SST 50 is similar to
those described above, with the additional features that the
transport 54 is able to both accept and dispense media, and can be
moved horizontally as well as vertically. Thus, a single transport
54 is sufficient to interface with both media dispense modules and
media deposit modules, as well as modules which accept and return
media (for example, magnetic strip card readers).
FIG. 4 shows a sketch of a media transport suitable for use with
the SSTs of FIGS. 1 to 3. The transport 70 comprises a container 72
with two media entrances 74, and two media exits 76. When media is
to enter the transport 70, the transport is moved to align one of
the entrances 74 with a media present means of, for example, a
media dispense module. Media items are presented through the
entrance 74 one at a time, with each item being driven by rotating
drive wheels 78 along a guide chute 80. Passing along the chute 80,
the media passes through a note thickness sensor 82, which
determines the thickness of each note, and hence whether a single
note has correctly passed through the sensor, or if two or more
notes have inadvertently been picked. If multiple notes are
detected, the deposit is void, and the contents of the transport 70
can be dumped in the SST purge bin.
Picked media falls from the chute 80 to the lower portion of the
container 72, where it lies on sprung platform 84. As further media
is taken into the transport 70, a bundle of media is assembled.
Rubber flick wheels 86 are moved into contact with the assembled
media bundle, and media is picked individually from the bundle and
passed through media exit 76. Alternatively, the flick wheels 86
may be replaced by pairs of rollers, to present the whole bundle at
once through the exit 76.
Provision of entrances 74 and exits 76 on both faces of the
transport 70 allows the transport to be used to pass media in
either direction.
A modified transport may be provided with only the upper entrances
76, leaving only a single aperture on either side of the transport
70, which apertures may act as entrances or exits as
appropriate.
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the SST illustrated
in FIG. 2 may be modified by replacing the movable media transport
as described with an elongate media path along which media may be
moved by means of a gear train. Gear wheels may be provided on each
module 36, 41 which transfer media between the module and a common
transport path connected to the respective media port 38, 40. The
wheels of each module 36, 41 may also interact with wheels of other
modules in the same stack to form the transport path, and so that
modules may easily be added or removed from the stack without the
need to re-configure the SST. Part of the transport path may also
be selectively actuated to direct media to or from a selected
module; for example, in sorting entered media into separate modules
for each denomination.
It can be seen that the present invention therefore provides an SST
with a media transport system which is easily adaptable and
re-configurable to take account of redesigns, and which may readily
be extended with additional modules and functionalities. Further,
certain embodiments of the invention remove the necessity for long
media transport paths, keeping movement of the media alone to a
minimum.
* * * * *